CANNON, Anna

Anna Cannon (b. 1962) is a New Zealand composer, musician, and music educator based in the Southland region. Born in Invercargill, she began composing at the age of fourteen and later completed a Bachelor of Arts in Music and a postgraduate diploma in music. Her principal interests include composition, improvisation, creativity, and the development of accessible educational repertoire.
Cannon writes primarily for piano, voice, and young or developing performers, often composing works specifically for her students. Her piano music includes Tweed Street Blues, Storm in A Minor, Bluff Harbour Blues, Moonlit Splendour, Wood Pigeon Blues, Let’s Pretend Mr Clementi, and Aramoana, Pathway to the Sea. Several of her pieces have been included in the examination syllabus of the St Cecilia School of Music. In 2015, Aramoana, Pathway to the Sea received a merit award in connection with the University of Otago’s Lilburn Trust Prize in Music. Her vocal output includes Once the Days Were Clear, a 2012 setting for voice and piano of a poem by New Zealand poet Denis Glover. Alongside her creative work, Cannon teaches instruments, composition, and music theory and promotes improvisation as an important element of musical education.